Protesters call for president’s impeachment

Eddie Fitzgerald, Sun Journal Staff

Tuesday

Aug 6, 2013 at 12:01 AMAug 6, 2013 at 3:27 PM

JAMES CITY — About eight protesters stood on the walkway over U.S. 70 in James City Tuesday morning holding signs that said “impeach Obama” causing truckers, commuters and travelers to honk their horns.

JAMES CITY — About eight protesters stood on the walkway over U.S. 70 in James City Tuesday morning holding signs that said “impeach Obama” causing truckers, commuters and travelers to honk their horns.

Dennis Haggett, a member of “Overpasses for Obama’s Impeachment” that started in California, said the demonstration in Craven County was one of 22 rallies taking place in North Carolina. Rallies were scheduled in every state and there have been about 50 rallies since the demonstrations started.

Haggett pointed to one of the signs that showed the things they were trying to get President Obama impeached for including, executive branch wrongdoings, lying about the handling of the deaths of embassy officials in Benghazi, spending money on “boondoggles,” wiretapping and bypassing Congress.

Tuesday was the fourth demonstration held in James City and another one is scheduled for Saturday, Haggett said.

“We’re getting a lot of honkers, a few waves and every now and then we get a single-finger wave,” Haggett said. “But we’ve had some community folks stop by and ask what we are doing and we talk to them. They either agree with us or they don’t. Two Vietnam veterans stopped by last weekend and thanked us for being out here.”

Nancy Murdoch of Havelock said she was part of the demonstration because she thought it was time American people stood up and the rallies might give them courage to do that.

“We’ve got a lot of people driving by and we want to let them know they are not alone in their frustrations over what’s going on in our country,” Murdoch said. “We know we are not going to be able to get Obama out of office, but we are infuriated when he talks about ‘phony scandals,’ like the IRS thing is a phony scandal and Benghazi is a phony scandal. I mean people had their lives affected by his actions and we’re upset about it. We feel like it is our right to stand up and speak out and to let people know some of us are awake and what has happened in the country is ridiculous.”

Lacy Downing, a resident of James City, was walking across the walkway filming the demonstration with his cell phone.

“It’s freedom of speech,” Downing said. “They have the right to do this. I’m not going to make it a racial thing … Now if there were 10 or 12 African-Americans in a different setting doing this, I don’t know how the locals would react. Hey, freedom of speech.”

But Downing said people who do protest need to research all the presidents and their actions while in office.

“I wonder if anyone up here knows anything about Bohemian Grove in northern California and the past presidents and I’ll just leave it at that,” Downing said. “I feel like they have a right to do this. I don’t have anything against it I mean its America.”

Bohemian Grove is a private club for the rich and powerful and many past presidents and business leaders.

Sonny McDonald, who was at his son’s business, Forbes Mobile Home Supplies, beside the walkway where the demonstrators were, said he didn’t have a problem with what they were doing.

“This is supposed to be a free country,” he said. “If that is what they want to do, it is perfectly all right. …When everybody finds out what is going on with Obamacare, you will probably see more of it.”

Eddie Fitzgerald can be reached at 252-635-5675 or at eddie.fitzgerald@newbernsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @staffwriter3.

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